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Is there an end to...well...endless feedings??

My DS is just over 2 weeks, and I swear since we left the hospital I have been feeding him nonstop. There have been a couple of nights where he has gone 3-4 hours between feedings, but of course I can't pinpoint what I did that day/night that helped him sleep so well. The last couple of days, he has been nursing CONSTANTLY, and it seems like he's not napping well. Today he only took one long nap (about 2 hours) and the rest have all been catnaps in my arms (if I try to lay him down, he's awake again and rooting). He has plenty of wet and poopy diapers and is gaining weight like a champ, so I know he's getting enough to eat. But is it normal for him to be attached to the breast all day? I'm starting to lose it, because it's to the point where if I even have to pee, I put him in his bouncy seat and he's instantly yelling for me and rooting. He doesn't cry, he just yells like he's pissed that I'm not shoving my boob in his face. I can't shower, because he doesn't nap well unless he's in my arms...ugh. I love him to death and I realize that I could have MUCH bigger problems than this...I guess I just want someone to say "I've been there, it blows, but in (insert number here) weeks it will be WAY better." Is there ever and end to this?? When does this whole "eating for 20 minutes every 2-3 hours" thing start? Help!!

Re: Is there an end to...well...endless feedings??

That sounds totally normal. I would not have survived without my sling in those early weeks. It took us a little practice to get the hang of nursing in it, but once we did it was totally liberating. I was able start getting out and doing whatever I felt like while still being able to keep my baby happy. There are mesh slings that you can use in the shower. My baby started spacing out and shortening up his feedings a little after his 6 week growth spurt. It's tough early on, but it get much easier. 2 week is still really young. Hang in there.

Re: Is there an end to...well...endless feedings??

I'm going through the same thing with my little girl (5 weeks) only she eats for about 40 mins (20 on each breast) every 1.5 hours day and night and is still crying for more after all my milk is gone. We can get her to sleep with a paci and as long as someone holds her, she stays asleep. I actually slept sitting up against the wall by the bed last night (what sleep i did get) and it's just awful. I have no advice as i could use some help myself, but you are definitely not alone! Praying it gets easier soon

Re: Is there an end to...well...endless feedings??

I honestly am dying to introduce a bottle at this point, just so my husband can join in on the fun. I know it's a little early for that, but it would be nice so that I can get through a whole shower without having to worry about DS being hungry. That and the opportunity to have him take on a feeding in the middle of the night.

Re: Is there an end to...well...endless feedings??

My little one is 4weeks old, and does the same thing. She takes catnaps throughout the day in between nearly constant nursing. In the evening she cluster feeds for 3 to 4 hours. I just settle in and go with it. She also wants to be held all the time, even while she sleeps. Co sleeping helps a lot. I hand her off when I can so that I can shower. Baby wearing also helps a great deal to free up your hands. Hang in there!

Re: Is there an end to...well...endless feedings??

I've been there, it blows, and it's temporary! Stay strong, use the sling, and just say no to bottles for a few more weeks. I know it's just driving you bonkers, but I swear that this phase will pass. I'm willing to bet your baby is going through his 3 week growth spurt a hair early.

ETA: there's no point at which babies routinely start eating for 20 minutes every 2-3 hours. I don't know who came up with that standard, but I wish they'd kept that particular piece of crazy tucked under their tinfoil hat because many new moms feel like they must be doing something wrong or their babies must be abnormal because they have a different feeding pattern. My girls both nursed every 1-2 hours throughout the day until around a year. They never gave me a 2-3 hour break during the day on a routine basis, though occasionally they would go that long when they were out in public and distracted by the big interesting world. What will eventually happen, though, is that feeding your baby will get faster and less challenging. By the time most babies are just a few months old, they are capable of getting a decent feeding in just 5-10 minutes at the breast, and they require little help in nursing because they can support their own heads and position their own bodies much better than a newborn. In addition, babies start "giving back" as they grow- they smile at you, they reach out and touch you, they giggle, they coo- in short, nursing becomes much more rewarding!

Re: Is there an end to...well...endless feedings??

The early weeks with a newborn can be a shock. It’s a time lots of moms think “no one ever told me it would be like this!” or even "OMG I have made a horrible mistake!" It can feel like your life has turned completely upside down. Well, that is because it has. Parenthood does that.

But as pps suggest, what you and your baby are experiencing is completely normal. Maybe it will help to think about things from your baby’s point of view.

Up until 2 weeks ago, your babies entire world was constant warmth, comfort, and security. He never knew hunger, or fear, or loneliness. He was both utterly secure and yet oddly more independent. He was fed constantly with no effort, he could open his mouth whenever he felt like it and drink, he was held constantly, in such a way that he had some freedom of movement but not so much that he felt alone. He was reassured at all times by the sound of your constantly beating heart, your voice, and the movement of your body as you lived and breathed with him inside you.

Now his world is completely different. It is brighter. It is both louder and quieter. He is experiencing all kinds of new sensations- is breathing air, which he never did before, he is digesting nutrients in a way he never did before…Two weeks ago, he had never pooped! It’s all so new to him…

And nature has equipped him with two ways to continue to get comfort-to be nestled in the arms, against the beating heart, of you or another trusted, safe person-and to suckle. This is by biological design, because this constant suckling is what will give you a good milk supply for baby going forward and ensure baby gets enough to meet the needs of his rapidly growing body.

No, this intense time does not last forever. It does not even last for long, although it may feel long-at first, but when it is over, and these days are only a memory, you may well wonder how it could have gone by so quickly. But babies grow-that is what they do. He will adjust to this new world and not need so much constant comfort. He will eventually not need to nurse so much because his tummy will get a bigger plus his growth will naturally slow-if it did not, he would be giant.

But this is normal life with a newborn. It does not matter how they are fed. This has nothing to do with if you breast of bottle feed. ALL babies have these needs for pretty much constant comfort at this point. Some do not get them met, but they still have the need.

This is an intense, exhausting time for all moms. Do you have help? It’s time to call in re-enforcements if you can. IMO this is the time moms should be treated like queens caring for the royal infant. As much as possible, everyone else should be doing for you, waiting on you hand and foot, because all your energies have to be directed toward your infant and meeting your personal needs.

A sling would probably help. And if you have to put baby down in a safe place, even if he cries, while you pee, or stick your head out the door to make sure the world has not disappeared, or stick your head in a pillow and scream, or whatever you need to do to release some stress, then do it.

Re: Is there an end to...well...endless feedings??

The early weeks with a newborn can be a shock. It’s a time lots of moms think “no one ever told me it would be like this!” or even "OMG I have made a horrible mistake!"

The "OMG, I have made a horrible mistake" mom- that was me. It wasn't that I didn't love my daughter... In the abstract. But as a concrete crying, pooping, nipple-destroying, freedom-inhibiting baby... She was very hard to accept and love. I certainly did not enjoy her the way I thought I was going to, and there were many days when I silently wished I could put her back where she came from, or at least ditch her and hop a bus to Montana (I don't know why I wanted to go to Montana, but I did...). It's very hard to admit all that, but it's the truth.

But like so many things with parenting, it gets better if you just soldier through the worst parts. As time went on I discovered how to truly love my daughter and I took more and more pleasure in her company.